Amid reports of global technology major Apple looking to move out a limited operations from China, rumors are abuzz that next gen iPhone 14 series, to be unveiled next week, will be assembled in India just about six weeks behind China while the next iPhone 15 is likely to be manufactured at the same time in India and China next year.
According to top industry expert Ming-Chi Kuo, as the time difference between India and China has narrowly decreased in terms of manufacturing iPhones in the country, it is now expected that both countries would produce iPhone 15 simultaneously in 2023.
“The iPhone 14’s mass production schedule in India this year is still about six weeks behind China, but the gap has improved significantly. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that India and China will be able to produce the new iPhone 15 at the same time next year,” Kuo tweeted.
[Update] The iPhone 14's mass production schedule in India this year is still about six weeks behind China, but the gap has improved significantly. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that India and China will be able to produce the new iPhone 15 at the same time next year. https://t.co/4hQFoMm9Eq
— 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) September 1, 2022
Last month, reports mentioned that the tech giant will start the production of the latest iPhones in India two months after its debut. However, the Kuo now mentions that it will be manufactured “about six weeks” later.
“My latest survey indicates Foxconn’s iPhone production site in India will ship the new 6.1-inch iPhone 14 almost simultaneously with China for the first time in the second half of 2022 (India being one quarter or more behind in the past),” Kuo tweeted last month.
In the short term, India’s iPhone capacities/shipments still have a considerable gap with China, “but it’s an important milestone for Apple in building a non-Chinese iPhone production site,” the analyst added. The tech giant has been working with its suppliers and ramping up its production in India over the years.
Meanwhile, Apple’s ‘Far Out’ event on September 7 will showcase the new iPhone 14 lineup, Watches, and other products. This will be an in-person event at Apple’s Cupertino campus in the US, the company’s first big event to take place since the two years of the pandemic.
Apple sold over 1.2 million iPhones in the country in the second quarter (Q2) this year, registering a massive 94 per cent growth (year-on-year) according to market intelligence firm Cyber Media Research (CMR). Apple first started manufacturing iPhones in India in 2017, with iPhone SE.
